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Study: Almost Half of Resumes are Bogus

A new six-month review of résumés found that a surprising number contained “major misrepresentations.”

While much attention has been focused on performance-enhancing drugs in the sports world over the past few years, a new study shows that the business world may be suffering from even more cheating — at least when it comes to résumés.

RésuméDoctor.com, a South Burlington, Vt.-based résumé-counseling company, spent six months verifying dates of employment, job titles, and educational background on more than 1,000 résumés, and found that 42.7% had one or more significant errors. The study, which was the company’s first, looked a résumés for positions ranging from entry level to executive.

“I was shocked at how many people include a major misrepresentation in their résumé,” said Mike Worthington, co-founder of RésuméDoctor.

There is certainly no shortage of high-profile résumé flaps. Just last week, RadioShack CEO Dave Edmonson resigned after admitting misstatements on his résumé. Michael Brown, the embattled former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, faced scathing criticism after Hurricane Katrina over the thinness of his résumé. And George O’Leary lost his job as Notre Dame’s head football coach four years ago for inventing a master’s degree on his résumé.

One thought on “Study: Almost Half of Resumes are Bogus”

It’s disappointing to read something like that. So for those of us who are telling the truth on our resumes, companies will not believe us because the other half of the applicants have lied? As if it wasn’t hard enough.